【Objective】 To analyze the basic characteristics of whole blood donors from blood stations before and after the outbreak of COVID-19. 【Methods】 After excluding invalid data, data related to the basic characteristics of whole blood donors collected from 26 blood stations in China during 2018 to 2021 were statistically analyzed, including the trend of total whole blood donors, the number of repeated blood donors, the frequency of blood donation, the average age of donors and the recruitment of first-time blood donors. 【Results】 Affected by the epidemic, 8 out of 14 indicators were with large variations, accounting for 57%. The overall growth rate of total whole blood donors during the epidemic was higher than before the epidemic (P<0.05).The number of repeated blood donors has shown an increased trend, with a higher number during the epidemic than before (P<0.05). The frequency of blood donation was lower during the epidemic than before(P<0.05).Average ages of blood donors and female blood donors fluctuated widely during the epidemic, both higher than those before the epidemic(P<0.05).The donation rate of first-time blood donors <25 years old and ≥25 years old varied widely and irregularly during the epidemic (both P<0.05). The percentage of first-time blood donors fluctuated irregularly during the epidemic, with overall percentage lower than that before the epidemic(P<0.05). 【Conclusion】 Whole blood donors from 26 blood stations increased after the outbreak of COVID-19, and some indicators in certain areas showed significant fluctuations during the epidemic.

Objective:To explore the clinical features, follow-up characteristics and prognosis of rheumatic disease complicated with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in children, and to provide support for its clinical diagnosis and treatment.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on the data of rheumatic 24 patients complicated with PAH hospitalized in the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Children′s Hospital Affiliated to the Capital Institute of Pediatrics, Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Jiangxi Children′s Hospital, Department of Pediatrics Ⅰ, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University and Department of Pediatrics, the Affiliated Hospital of Inner Mongolia Medical University from January 2013 to June 2022.The rheumatic patients complicated with PAH were followed up by telephone on June 30, 2022, and their clinical symptoms, treatment, follow-up, and prognosis data were collected.According to different treatment methods, the patients were divided into different clinical subgroups. The change of PAH was analyzed. The t-test was used for comparison between groups. P<0.05 was statistically significant. Results:A total of 24 cases were enrolled, with 7 males and 17 females.The average onset age of PAH was (10.97±3.79) years old.The median duration of PAH was 6.00 (32.20) months.The average pulmonary artery pressure was (51.71±17.66) mmHg(1 mmHg=0.133 kPa). There were 9 cases of systemic lupus erythematosus, 5 cases of Takayasu′s arteritis, 3 cases of juvenile dermatomyositis, 3 cases of undifferentiated connective tissue disease, 2 cases of systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis, 1 case of Behcet′s disease, and 1 case of Kawasaki disease.Among 24 cases, the common symptoms were fever (14 cases), fatigue (10 cases) and dyspnea (7 cases). Of the 24 cases, 10 cases were complicated with hydropericardium, 9 cases with valve regurgitation, and 5 cases with decreased systolic and/or diastolic function.Lung changes were observed in 17 cases.Eleven cases were tested for B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), and the BNP levels were all elevated in them (11 cases), with a median BNP of 3 073 (10 645) ng/L.After the first occurrence of PAH, 12 cases were treated with Methylprednisolone therapy, 10 cases received Cyclophosphamide therapy, and 2 cases who were both systemic lupus erythematosus, underwent blood purification.In the treatment of PAH, 11 cases were treated with pulmonary artery pressure reduction, and 7 of the 11 cases took PAH-targeted drugs.The mean decrease of the average pulmonary artery pressure in children receiving the targeted therapy[(44.80±24.08) mmHg] was significant higher than that in children not receiving the targeted therapy [(16.15±17.25) mmHg] ( t=2.661, P=0.016). Twenty children were reexamined and/or followed up, and the average course of PAH at the telephone follow-up was (36.29±26.67) months.The pulmonary arterial hypertension in 6 cases completely recovered, with median recovery time of 8.00 (13.47) months, but 2 of them died after the complete recovery.The pulmonary arterial hypertension improved in 11 children, 1 of whom died and the remaining children were in stable condition.The pulmonary arterial hypertension worsened in 2 children, 1 of them improved previously but aggravated recently, and the other child did not monitor pulmonary artery pressure and died during telephone follow-up. Conclusions:Rheumatic diseases complicated with PAH are rare and most often diagnosed in severe rheumatic children.It can lead to death, and is commonly accompanied by notably elevated BNP levels.The patients who have early PAH detection, intensive treatment of the primary disease, symptomatic and targeted pulmonary artery pressure reduction show a better prognosis.

Objective: To discuss the application principle in tuina manipulation for lumbar intervertebral disc herniation (LIDH) in Chinese literatures published in recent 30 years. Methods: The three major Chinese databases, Wanfang Academic Journal Full-text Database (Wanfang), Chongqing VIP Database (CQVIP) and China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), were searched to collect the studies of tuina manipulations in treatment of LIDH published in recent 30 years. Clustering analysis was applied to analyze the top 20 tuina manipulations for LIDH. Results: The top 20 most frequently used manipulations for LIDH were Gun-rolling, Rou-kneading, Dian-digital pressing, oblique Ban-pulling, An-pressing, Tanbo-plucking, Bashen-pulling and extending, horizontal Tui-pushing, Na-grasping, Anrou-pressing and kneading, Dou-shaking, Yao-rocking, Ca-scrubbing, Pai-patting, post-extension Ban-pulling, Mo-rubbing, Zhen-vibrating, Nie-pinching, fist-back Ji-tapping, and dorsal Shen-extending methods. The involved manipulations can be divided into two categories by the treated body areas. One category is applied to the soft tissues, including Gun-rolling, Rou-kneading, Dian-digital pressing, An-pressing, Tanbo-plucking, horizontal Tui-pushing, Na-grasping, Anrou-pressing and kneading, Ca-scrubbing, Pai-patting, Mo-rubbing, Zhen-vibrating, Nie-pinching, and fist-back Ji-tapping methods. The other category is applied to bones and joints, including oblique Ban-pulling, Bashen-pulling and extending, Dou-shaking, Yao-rocking, post-extension Ban-pulling, and dorsal Shen-extending methods. Conclusion: Based on the treated body area, the tuina manipulations applied to treat LIDH are predominated by the ones performed on soft tissues, assisted by those on bones and joints. From the way of force exertion, the involved manipulations are majorly the swinging methods, followed by squeezing and pressing ones. The manipulations applied to bones and joints are predominated by the Ban-pulling ones, followed by the Bashen-pulling and extending ones.

One of the core symptoms in anxiety disorders is dysregulated fear response. It is crucial for psychologists and neuroscientists to understand how fear responses are enhanced and inhibited. Although oxytocin (OXT) was initially conceived as a prosocial molecule and mammalian neuropeptide that enhances cooperation and trust, later studies showed that it produces modulatory influence on fear responses. Therefore, OXT is now regarded as a promising pharmacological agent to boost treatment response in anxiety disorders. However, the effect of OXT on fear responses have been somewhat complex, and there are some contradictions among animal experiments and human studies. In this article, we summarize recent studies that employed animal models, brain region-specific manipulations and preclinical studies to explore the role of OXT in the acquisition and processing of fear response. We also discuss the methodological differences among these studies and review the potential factors that may contribute to the complicated effect of OXT on fear response. This review will help to promote the potential clinical application of OXT.
Animals ; Brain ; drug effects ; Fear ; drug effects ; Humans ; Oxytocics ; pharmacology ; Oxytocin ; pharmacology

PURPOSE: To assess the effectiveness and safety of acupuncture for erectile dysfunction (ED). MATERIALS AND METHODS: We searched six major English and Chinese databases included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) testing acupuncture alone or in combination for ED. Dichotomous data were presented as risk ratio (RR) and continuous data were presented as mean difference (MD) both with 95% confidence interval (CI). The Revman (v.5.3) was used for data analyses. Quality of evidence across studies was assessed by the online GRADEpro tool. RESULTS: We identified 22 RCTs, fourteen of them involving psychogenic ED. Most of the included RCTs had high or unclear risk of bias. There was no difference between electro-acupuncture and sham acupuncture with electrical stimulation on the rate of satisfaction and self-assessment (RR, 1.50; 95% CI, 0.71–3.16; 1 trial). Acupuncture combined with tadalafil appeared to have better effect on increasing cure rate (RR, 1.31; 95% CI, 1.00–1.71; 2 trials), and International Index of Erectile Function-5 scores (MD, 5.38; 95% CI, 4.46–6.29; 2 trials). When acupuncture plus herbal medicine compared with herbal medicine alone, the combination therapy showed significant better improvement in erectile function (RR, 1.68; 95% CI, 1.31–2.15; 7 trials). Only two trials reported facial red and dizziness cases, and needle sticking and pruritus cases in acupuncture group. CONCLUSIONS: Low quality evidence shows beneficial effect of acupuncture as adjunctive treatment for people mainly with psychogenic ED. Safety of acupuncture was insufficiently reported. The findings should be confirmed in large, rigorously designed and well-reported trials.
Acupuncture ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Bias (Epidemiology) ; Dizziness ; Electric Stimulation ; Erectile Dysfunction ; Herbal Medicine ; Humans ; Male ; Needles ; Odds Ratio ; Pruritus ; Self-Assessment ; Statistics as Topic ; Tadalafil

Objective To investigate the change of serum matrix metalloproteinases-9 (MMP-9) expression before,during,and after carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and to investigate the prognostic role of MMP-9. Methods Forty carotid stenosis patients who underwent CEA in the Department of Vascular Surgery,Peking Union Medical College Hospital from February to September 2012 were enrolled in this study. Based on the findings of transcranial doppler monitoring,patients were divided into embolic-positive group and emboli-negative group. Serum samples were obtained from 40 consecutive patients undergoing CEA before operation (pre-op),before de-clamping,30 minutes after de-clamping,and 12 hours after operation (12-h post-op). MMP-9 expression was quantified using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and gelatin zymography. Student's t-test and chi-square test were used to compare the differences between these two groups. Results Of these 40 patients,microemboli were detected in 8 patients. The 12-h post-op MMP-9 level was significantly higher than the pre-op level in the emboli-positive group [(904.27±369.47)ng/ml vs. (333.88±126.32) ng/ml,t=4.132,P=0.001].However,there was no difference between pre-op and 12-h post-op MMP-9 levels in the emboli-negative group [(375.83±194.36) ng/ml vs. (472.74±271.21) ng/ml,t=-1.643,P=0.081]. Gelatin zymography also showed higher MMP-9 activity in the emboli-positive group than in the emboli-negative group. Conclusion Serum MMP-9 concentration remarkably increases 12 hours after CEA in patients with microemboli shedding,suggesting MMP-9 may be a potential biomarker for CEA-related cerebral ischemic injury.

OBJECTIVETo explore the relationship between fasting C-peptide (F-CP) and serum uric acid (SUA) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

METHODSA total of 347 hospitalized patients with T2DM were stratified according to F-CP level to analyze the impact of increased F-CP levels on SUA level and the incidence of hyperuricemia (HUA). The patients with an elevated SUA level (>420 µmol/L) and a normal SUA level (≤420 µmol/L) were compared for general data, fasting C-peptide and other clinical indexes. Pearson or Spearman correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlation of SUA level with F-CP levels and other parameters. The risk factors of elevated SUA were analyzed by binary logistic regression, multiple regression analysis and hierarchical interaction analysis. The ROC curve was used to analyze the independent risk factors of elevated SUA and determine the corresponding cut-off values.

RESULTSCompared with those with a normal SUA level, patients with elevated SUA had higher body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio, F-CP, postprandial 2hC peptide (2hP-CP), triglyceride (TG), homocysteine (HCY), serum creatinine (SCr) level (P<0.05), and a greater percentage of drinking (44.8% vs 32.6%, P=0.006), but had significantly lowered levels of HbA1c, high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (P<0.05). SUA was found to be positively correlated with F-CP, 2hP-CP, BMI, waist-to-hip ratio, diastolic blood pressure, TG, HCY, SCr, smoking and drinking (P<0.05), and was negatively correlated with gender, age, age of disease onset, HbA1c, HDL and eGFR (P<0.05). SUA level and the incidence of hyperuricemia increasea significantly with F-CP level (P<0.05). F-CP was identified as an independent risk factor for elevated SUA, and gender did not affect the relationship between F-CP and SUA. ROC curve analysis showed that a F-CP level >1.260 ng/mL was associated with a significantly increased risk of hyperuricemia in T2DM patients.

CONCLUSIONF-CP is closely related with SUA and may be an independent risk factor of elevated SUA in patients with T2DM.

Aim To observe the effect of epidurally application of osthole on the model of nucleus pulposusinduced inflammatory radicular pain and the expression of p38 MAPK signaling related pathway in the spinal dorsal horn of rats.Methods The model of radicular pain was generated by putting nucleus pulposus to the L5 dorsal root ganglion (DRG).50％ MWT was measured using Von Frey filaments to calculate mechanical pain threshold before and after operation.50 μL of 20 g · L-1 osthole was administered epidurally in group Ost and 50 μL of 100 mL · L-1 DMSO in group DMSO at postoperative day (POD).The expression of phosphorylated p38 (p-p38),IL-18 and IL-18R in the lumbar spinal dorsal horn was detected by Western blot.IL-18 mRNA was assessed by real-time PCR.Results The mechanical pain threshold significantly decreased after operation (P ＜ 0.05),while the expression of protein p-p38 MAPK,IL-18,IL-18R and IL-18 mRNA was significantly different.Compared with DMSO group,50％ MWT was significantly increased and accompanied with the decrease of protein p-p38,IL-18,IL-lgR and IL-18 mRNA in Ost group after drug administration (P ＜ 0.05).The correlation analysis between protein concentration of p38 MAPK and IL-18 mRNA showed that the Spearman correlation coefficient was 0.9 (P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion p-p38 and IL-18 of spinal dorsal horn participate in the rat model with inflammatory radicular pain induced by nucleus pulposus,and IL-18R plays a role in maintenance of the pain.Osthole administered epidurally in the early stage of pain could alleviate the pain for a long time,which may be related with inhibiting p38 MAPK signaling related pathways.

Objective The treatment methods for blood blister-like aneurysm remain controversial due to its special patholog-ical structure,the risk of post-operative rebleeding and the high rate of recurrence. The arm of this paper is to access the feasibility and effectiveness of overlapping stent-assisted coiling in the treatment of blood blister-like aneurysms of the internal carotid artery. Methods Form January 2014 to December 2016,we treated 15 patients with blood blister-like aneurysm of the internal carotid artery by stent-assisted coiling in the Department of Neurosurgery,5 with two Enterprise tents,3 with three Enterprise tents,4 with Enter-prise+LVIS tents,and 3 with two LVIS tents. We determined the rate of immediate embolization of aneurysms by Raymond-Roy Occlu-sion Classification(RROC)and analyzed the clinical characteristics,postoperative complications,and follow-up data. Results All the coils and stents were successfully implanted. RROC showed 9 cases of gradeⅠ(60%),4 cases of gradeⅡ(27%),and 2 cases of gradeⅢimmediate occlusion(13%),with the parent arteries unobstructed in all the cases. Thrombosis in the stent was found in 2 cases intraoperatively,slight stent migration in 1 case,and internal carotid artery dissection in the petrous segment in another,but no cer-ebral vasospasm or aneurysm rupture in any case.Delayed cerebral in-farct was observed in 2 cases postoperatively. The patients were fol-lowed up for 2 weeks to 28 months,which showed that 11 of them were cured,2 remained stable and 2 developed further thrombosis,with an MRS score of 0-2 in 12 cases,4 in 1 case,5 in 1 case, and 6 in 1case. Conclusion Overlapping stent-assisted coiling is effective for the treatment of blood blister-like aneurysm by reduc-ing the risks of rebleeding and recurrence.

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between the acetylcholine concentration in the blood and gelsenicine-induced death in mice. Kunming mice were given intraperitoneal injections of normal saline, gelsenicine or different doses of acetylcholine chloride. Atropine was given to the mice which received gelsenicine or medium dose acetylcholine chloride injection. The blood was sampled immediately when the mice died or survived for 20 min after injection. The acetylcholine concentration and acetylcholinesterase activity in the blood were measured by the testing kits, and the mortality was calculated and analyzed. The results showed that half lethal dose of gelsenicine (0.15 mg/kg) reduced the acetylcholinesterase activity and increased the blood acetylcholine concentration. The blood acetylcholine concentration of the dead mice in the gelsenicine group was increased to 43.0 μg/mL (from 31.1 μg/mL in the control), which was lower than that (53.9 μg/mL) of the dead mice in the medium dose acetylcholine chloride group, but almost equal to that (42.7 μg/mL) of the survival mice in the medium dose acetylcholine chloride group. Atropine could successfully rescue the mice from acetylcholine poisoning, but its efficiency of rescuing the mice from gelsenicine intoxication was weak. These results suggest that gelsenicine can inhibit acetylcholinesterase activity and increase blood acetylcholine concentration, but the accumulation of acetylcholine may not be the only or main cause of the death induced by gelsenicine in mice.
Acetylcholine ; Animals ; Death ; Indole Alkaloids ; Mice